Dungeon-crawling goodness

On a quest for riches, mercenaries Caddoc and E’lara come across an ancient door that leads to a realm jam-packed with baddies to slay and gold to hoard. They are guided by Seraphine, a temptress voiced by Lucy Lawless who bestows mighty abilities on the pair.

Don’t expect this to be a role-playing game, which many fantasy games are. It feels more like “Gears of War” with swords, bows and arrows. E’lara, a dainty elven huntress with a sadistic death wish, slings arrows like her bow was a machine gun — though she can switch to melee when needed. Caddoc, a thoughtful brute, takes on the role of tank — though he doesn’t truly fill that job until he unlocks more abilities. Each character plays very differently, as “Hunted” was designed to make the two cover each others weaknesses.

The writing is clever, with the banter between Caddoc and E’lara eliciting plenty of chuckles. “Hunted” sports fantastic graphics, and though the colors are very drab, it sets the scene for a blighted kingdom that needs to be freed from its oppressors … and its gold. The only problem with the muted color palate is that it makes secret areas even harder to spot.

Conquering the game takes about 14 hours, depending on how many side missions you take on. There are plenty of fun little puzzles, though they aren’t incredibly challenging — just a tiny bit of thinking. The single-player campaign would have benefited from being able to switch between Caddoc and E’lara on the fly; instead, you have to wait for specific checkpoints.

Multiplayer makes the game feel more like the adventure it was meant to be. Like in “Portal 2” multiplayer, you need to work closely together to clear each section — as it’s very tough to do alone. This mode also requires better management of health and mana potions.

“Hunted” may not win any game-of-the-year awards, but it’s an action-packed adventure that will keep you very entertained until the next big release you’re waiting on.